Atmospheric emissions of Fe-containing nanoparticles from industrial activities

Air inhalation of exogenous Fe-containing nanoparticles (NPs) can lead to their occurrence in human organs. Comprehensive recognition on unintentional releases of Fe-containing NPs from ongoing large industrial activities is urgently required for sustainable human health. Here, we quantified Fe-containing NPs emissions in fine particulate matter collected from 132 full-scale industrial plants belong to 13 industrial categories. For the 13 investigated industries, most particles had a diameter of <80 nm. The sources with the highest Fe-containing NPs concentrations were hazardous waste incineration (1.4 × 10¹² particles/g), followed by blast furnace production of pig iron (6.2 × 10¹¹ particles/g) and electric-arc furnace steelmaking (4.7 × 10¹¹ particles/g). The annual total atmospheric emission of Fe-containing NPs from the 13 industries in China was 1.03 × 10²⁴ particles. Emissions of Fe-containing NPs from the 13 industries contribute to elevated concentrations of these particles in the atmosphere surrounding factories, potentially posing health risks to the general population. Coal-fired power plants, cement kiln co-processing of solid waste, blast furnace production of pig iron, coking plants, iron-ore sintering, electric-arc furnace steelmaking, and hazardous waste incineration collectively contributed to 99.9 % of the total annual atmospheric emissions from the 13 industries. These results are important for evaluating emissions and enhancing the sustainability of global industrial development.